When I was eleven years old, when I was in secondary school. I started an interest in that, and piano. But I didn't do it professionally until I was seventeen. A guy phoned me up after seeing me play with my semi-pro band, and asked me if I wanted to join the Gods. That was back in '66.

My major influence was John Bonham. I liked Buddy Rich - I liked his drumming, for big band stuff. And I liked John because he could really get on the beat. Great guy.
Since 1971, drummer Lee Kerslake has been the backbone of rock greats Uriah Heep. From his first early rumblings on the "Demons & Wizards" album to such latter day classics as "Sea Of Light" and "Sonic Origami", Lee has displayed an incredibly powerful style, attacking the beat with a sure hand.

As one half of a formidable rhythm section that included bassist Bob Daisley, he's also the gentleman who lobbed cannon-fire from your stereo speakers in the furious intro to "Diary Of A Madman's" opening track, "Over The Mountain." Lee Kerslake, currently on holiday in Lanzarote, sat for a while to talk about his tenure with Uriah Heep, his stint with Ozzy Osbourne and more.

He stayed with that group from their beginnings in 1972 all the way up to 1979, playing on every album in that era. Previous to that band he played with a band called Gods, releasing three albums with them prior to Heep. He also found the time, while still in Heep, to play on David Byron's and Ken Hensley's solo albums, among other discs. In fact, in 1976 he recorded a final album with Gods. He eventually rejoined Heep, but in the time between he recorded both with Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath.